‘I Was The Same’: Hurkacz Welcomes ‘Hubi Cup’-Winning Kids To Halle

Hubert Hurkacz begins his Terra Wortmann Open title defence Tuesday against Christopher Eubanks in Halle. The World No. 17 will have some extra voices of support from the stands as he seeks a fast start at the grass-court ATP 500.

The Pole invited the seven winners from the inaugural Hubi Cup, an Under 12s tournament that he founded in his homeland, to Germany as his special guests at the OWL ARENA. Hurkacz was looking forward to showing his best form in front of some of the highest-ranked juniors in Poland.

“I think that’s going to be really cool [to have them at my match] and I hope the kids will enjoy it,” Hurkacz told ATPTour.com. “I think they definitely have a bright future ahead of them and I think seeing the players can also help them see things more clearly for themselves and see the path. I hope they will really enjoy this event.”

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^{_{Hubert Hurkacz greets the talented juniors at the tournament hotel in Halle on Monday afternoon. Photo: Andy West/ATP Tour.}}

The inaugural Hubi Cup took place from 1-4 June in Wroclaw, Hurkacz’s hometown. Although the 26-year-old’s ATP Tour commitments prevented him from attending the event, he was impressed with some of the video footage he saw.

“They look good and obviously the kids are playing some great tennis and competing well,” said the six-time ATP Tour titlist. “It’s always fun to see because I was the same. I came from Poland, playing the same [sort of] events.

“It’s really a great sport to bring the kids together and enjoy tennis, to have a nice trip and see some professional players competing. I hope the kids enjoy that and have fun out there.”

Hurkacz defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime, Nick Kyrgios and Daniil Medvedev en route to the crown a year ago in Halle, where he this week competes as the sixth seed.